Weekday Gospel Reflection

Monday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Matthew 7:1-5 - World English Bible

Jesus told his followers:

1 “Don’t judge, so that you won’t be judged. 2 For with
whatever judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with whatever
measure you measure, it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the
speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that
is in your own eye? 4 Or how will you tell your brother, ‘Let me
remove the speck from your eye;’ and behold, the beam is in your own
eye? 5 You hypocrite! First remove the beam out of your own eye, and
then you can see clearly to remove the speck out of your brother’s
eye."

We all judge others, implicitly or explicitly, but our judgment
measures our character. Do we judge harshly or with understanding,
with vengeance or with mercy? After all, others will judge us as we
have judged them.

Jesus told the parable of the beam to make his point. Again, he
painted the story in extremes, in an absurdity that lead many scholars
to believe he told a joke. How could some have a beam in his own eye
without noticing it? How could someone blinded by such an obstruction
take the speck of dust out of another's eye? Underneath such humor,
lay his moral; prejudice blinded people and led them to judge harshly.
Remove the vice and judgment would turn toward empathy.

We all judge others, for better or ill, but judgment is a two edged
sword. The way we treat others reflects the way we treat ourselves and
the way we encourage others to treat each other.

Tuesday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

6 “Don’t give that which is holy to the dogs, neither
throw your pearls before the pigs, lest perhaps they trample them
under their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces.

12 Therefore whatever you desire for men to do to you,
you shall also do to them; for this is the law and the prophets.

13 “Enter in by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and
broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many are those who
enter in by it. 14 How narrow is the gate, and restricted is the way
that leads to life! Few are those who find it."

In the midst of his teaching, Jesus presented three sayings: an
admonition, a statement on Christian ethics and a statement on
salvation. First, he warned his followers; do not present what is most
precious to the unclean. Dogs were scavengers in the the time of Jesus
and pigs (actually wild boars) were unclean. People used both titles
as insults towards sinners and Gentiles. What can we make of this
saying? Be selective about Christian witness, for it requires wisdom.

Next, Jesus restated his teaching on second part of the Great
Commandment, paraphrasing Leviticus 19:18: "Love your neighbor as
yourself." He insisted this summed up Scripture ("the Law and the
prophets").

Last, Jesus spoke of a sheep gate, narrow in construction, so sheep
could be controlled as they entered or left the pen. Going through the
gate took time, hence required patience. A large or loose gate would
allow many sheep to escape the pen, creating chaos, leaving the
shepherd without control over his flock. Notice how he applied the
image to salvation. Yes, it is a gift from God, but responding to
salvation took time and patience and wisdom. One cannot rush into
heaven. Like a sheep entering the sheep gate, one answered God's call
one step at a time.

How do you develop wisdom in your spiritual life? How
do you apply that gift in your relationships with others?

Wednesday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Matthew 7:15-20 - World English Bible

Jesus told his followers:

15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s
clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves. 16 By their fruits you
will know them. Do you gather grapes from thorns, or figs from
thistles? 17 Even so, every good tree produces good fruit; but the
corrupt tree produces evil fruit. 18 A good tree can’t produce evil
fruit, neither can a corrupt tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree
that doesn’t grow good fruit is cut down, and thrown into the fire. 20
Therefore by their fruits you will know them."

At the beginning of Matthew 7, Jesus warned his disciples about
judging others; now, he assumed they would size up those who claim a
mantle of leadership. The difference, of course, was the social
peaking order. The disciple did not judge an equal or one below them,
but the person who strove for authority. A disciple had a
responsibility to measure the worth of a leader, for, by definition, a
follower aligned himself with the values and direction of the one
above him. Was it worth the energy or effort to be part of a leader's
group or social circle? That was the question the Lord implicitly
asked his audience.

Jesus gave a pragmatic answer in an agricultural analogy. Don't look
to the person's ideas but to the results of their behavior (fruit).
Product trumps ideology. A leader could have a smooth delivery, but if
their actions were shady or their intent was self-serving, beware! "By
their fruits you will know them."

Which leaders do you admire? Why? Which ones have
disappointed you? Why? What sort of leader are you?

Thursday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

Matthew 7:21-29 - World English Bible

Jesus told his followers:

21 "Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter
into the Kingdom of Heaven; but he who does the will of my Father who
is in heaven. 22 Many will tell me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we
prophesy in your name, in your name cast out demons, and in your name
do many mighty works?’ 23 Then I will tell them, ‘I never knew you.
Depart from me, you who work iniquity.’

24 “Everyone therefore who hears these words of mine, and
does them, I will liken him to a wise man, who built his house on a
rock. 25 The rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and
beat on that house; and it didn’t fall, for it was founded on the
rock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of mine, and doesn’t do them
will be like a foolish man, who built his house on the sand. 27 The
rain came down, the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat on that
house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

28 When Jesus had finished saying these things, the
multitudes were astonished at his teaching, 29 for he taught them with
authority, and not like the scribes.

In Matthew, Jesus finished his first discourse (chapters 5-7) with a
warning and a parable. First, he laid a caveat upon the disciple. One
could not enter the Kingdom by simply evangelizing and exercising
charisms; after all, the self-centered could behave as a Christian for
his own ends. No, a disciple must focus on the will of the Father to
enter His Kingdom.

Next, the parable of the wise and foolish builder summed up his
teaching. In the story, he divided his audience into those who applied
his words to their lives (the wise man who built upon rock) and those
that ignored his teaching (foolish man who build upon sand). Notice
the type of person he addressed and the position he took as teacher.
The wise man was highly esteemed in both Greek and Jewish cultures,
while the fool was more than a dolt; he was "godless" (Psalm 14:1).
Jesus set himself up as the source of wisdom and, hence, the conduit
to God. To hear his words meant to hear God's words; to reject his
words meant to turn away from God. One way led to solid ground; the
other way led to destruction.

At the end, his listeners sat astonished. Jesus did not claim any
school of teaching, unlike the scribes who claimed legitimacy from a
line of rabbis. No, he gained his authority from a higher source.

What is your reaction when you read the words of the
Lord? How have you tried to apply them to your life?

Friday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

1 When Jesus came down from the mountain, great
multitudes followed him. 2 Behold, a leper came to him and worshiped
him, saying, “Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean.”

3 Jesus stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying,
“I want to. Be made clean.” Immediately his leprosy was cleansed. 4
Jesus said to him, “See that you tell nobody, but go, show yourself to
the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to
them.”

After his first discourse (Matthew 5-7), Jesus came down from the
mountain and encountered a leper. Instead of remaining in quarantine
as the Law demanded, the ill man engaged the Lord, implicitly making
him unclean. But that did not stop the man from recognizing the power
of Jesus and making a request for healing. The Lord agreed and touched
the man, making himself ritually unclean, yet cleansing the leper.
Then, Jesus sent the man on his way, commanding the man to show
himself to the priests to fulfill the Law and to testify to the power
of the Lord.

Notice in the encounter that, through healing, Jesus possessed the
power to declare what was clean and, implicitly what was not clean.
His authority replaced that of the priests and the scribes. He made
the sick and sinner clean, not through isolation, but through
engagement. His touch cleansed.

Saturday in the Twelfth Week of Ordinary Time

5 When Jesus came into Capernaum, a centurion came to
him, asking him, 6 and saying, “Lord, my servant lies in the house
paralyzed, grievously tormented.”

7 Jesus said to him, “I will come and heal him.”

8 The centurion answered, “Lord, I’m not worthy for you
to come under my roof. Just say the word, and my servant will be
healed. 9 For I am also a man under authority, having under myself
soldiers. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and tell another,
‘Come,’ and he comes; and tell my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.”

10 When Jesus heard it, he marveled, and said to those
who followed, “Most certainly I tell you, I haven’t found so great a
faith, not even in Israel. 11 I tell you that many will come from the
east and the west, and will sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in
the Kingdom of Heaven, 12 but the children of the Kingdom will be
thrown out into the outer darkness. There will be weeping and gnashing
of teeth.” 13 Jesus said to the centurion, “Go your way. Let it be
done for you as you have believed.” His servant was healed in that
hour.

14 When Jesus came into Peter’s house, he saw his wife’s
mother lying sick with a fever. 15 He touched her hand, and the fever
left her. She got up and served him. 16 When evening came, they
brought to him many possessed with demons. He cast out the spirits
with a word, and healed all who were sick; 17 that it might be
fulfilled which was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, saying, “He
took our infirmities, and bore our diseases.”

In these verses from Matthew 8, Jesus healed a Gentile and a Jew. The
narrative of the Gentile came by the request of a centurion, an
officer in the hated Roman army. In this case, the Lord chose to make
himself unclean for the good of the soldier's servant, but the Gentile
stopped him from breaking ritual kosher. The man understood military
protocol; once a command was given, it was expected to be obeyed.
Jesus remarked on the power of the centurion's faith; the soldier and
many like him would enter the banquet of the Kingdom and feast along
side the patriarchs, but those who rejected the Lord would be turned
away. Notice Jesus praised the feared Roman, but spoke disparagingly
of his fellow countrymen.

Next, Jesus healed the Simon Peter's mother-in-law who responded by
serving him, a social expectation for a woman who had little status in
her in-laws' home. But he went on to heal others in his home base of
Capernaum. Matthew lost no time in describing his efforts as
fulfilling Scripture, in this case Isaiah 53:4.

Have you seen God work in the life of someone you held
in suspicion? How has he healed you?

Twelfth Week

in Ordinary Time

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